ELEANOR'S VISCERAL TOMB

IN LINCOLN
CATHEDRAL

Queen Eleanor
(13 March 2010)

close-up of effigy(19 March 2005)

The original visceral tomb in Lincoln Cathedral was made of Sussex marble, with
Eleanor's effigy in copper gilt on a copper table top. On the sides of the tomb
were escutcheons of England, Leon & Castile, and Ponthieu.

Ponthieu arms
(19 March 2005)

Leon & Castile arms(19 March 2005)

The Latin inscription inlaid in the copper
table is said to have read:

HIC SUNT SEPVLTA

VISCERA ALIANORE QVONDAM REGINE VXORIS REGIS EDVARDI

FILII
REGIS HENRICI

CVJVS ANIME PROPICIETVR DEVS AMEN PATER NOSTER

The tomb was completely destroyed in the 1640's during the Commonwealth purge. A
modern new tomb was made in 1891, with a similar copper effigy but no copper
table top. The inscription carved in the stone table top was similar to the
original wording, though not quite. In particular Alianore (her name was
misspelled ALLANORĘ) was shown as the Consort of Edward rather than his Wife,
which in fact agrees with the original wording (now unreadable) on her tomb in
Westminster Abbey (see TOMBS OF THE PLANTAGENET KINGS). (The Latin word Quondam was also omitted, perhaps through
lack of space, but it did not appear on the Westminster tomb either.) The
present inscription in Lincoln Cathedral thus reads: